Refrigerator door with trays



March 10, 1959 J. M. ROBINSON ET AL I 2,

REFRIGERATOR DOOR WITH TRAYS Filed Nov. 2, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet l 1 N VENT ORS.

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March 10, 1959 J. M. ROBINSON ETAL REFRIGERATOR DOOR WITH TRAYS 2 Sheets-Shae 2 Fild Nov. 2, 1957 m m 0. Wm M m w m J m M Q a ATTORNEYS.

United States Patent REFRIGERATOR DOOR WITH TRAYS James M. Robinson, Cedar Rapids, and Stanley A. Anderson, Marengo, Iowa, assignors to Amana Refrigeration, Inc., Amalia, Iowa, a corporation of Iowa Application November 25, 1957, Serial No. 698,721

Claims. (Cl. 312-248) This invention relates to refrigerators and has to do with trays mounted in the storage space of a refrigerator door for storing eggs, cheese, and other comestibles.

It is known to provide refrigerator doors with recesses in their inner faces for storage purposes, and with trays, positionable in such recesses. In general, in the known doors referred to, the trays are often difiicult to handle and detract from the general apperauce of the inner face of the door. Our invention is directed to a refrigerator door of the character referred to having trays which may be opened and closed with facility and, which when closed impart a neat and attractive appearance to the door. More specifically, the trays are mounted for swinging movement to closed and open positions, the mounting means being concealed and the trays, when closed, preferably extending the full width of the door recess, or substantially so, to impart an attractive and finished appearance to the door. We also provide concealed latch means for normally holding the trays in closed position, the doors being readily released for opening by slight upward movement and being latched closed incident to the closing movement thereof. A further and important feature of our invention resides in hinge means for supporting the trays of such character that they may quickly and easily be removed from the door for placement upon a counter top or other working surface, or for other purposes, and may as quickly and easily be replaced in the door. Further objects and advantages of our invention will appear from the detail description. I

In the drawings:

Figure l is a fragmentary inner face view of a refrigerator door embodying our invention, mounted on a refrigerator cabinet shown fragmentarily and in perspective;

Figure 2 is a sectional view, on an enlarged scale, taken substantially on line 22 of Figure 1, the door being broken away in substantial portion;

Figure 3 is a sectional view, on an enlarged scale, taken substantially on line 3-3 of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a detail plan view, on an enlarged scale, of the outer front corner portion of one of the trays and the hinge mounting means therefor, the tray being shown in closed position and the adjacent side wall of the door recess being shown fragmentarily and in section;

Figure 5 is an outer end view of the forward portion of one of the trays, on a reduced scale relative to Figure 4; and

Figure 6 is a perspective view, on the same scale as Figure 5, of one of the tray mounting brackets.

We have shown our invention as applied to a refrigerator door 10 mounted by means of hinges, one of which is shown at 11, on a refrigerator cabinet 12. The door 10 and the cabinet 12 may be of any suitable known construction. Door 10 is provided at its inner face with a substantially rectangular recess 13 of substantial depth having a liner 14 providing the top, bottom and side walls of the recess. A shelf 15 extends across the recess 13 for supporting packages of foods or other articles stored 2 in the recess above the shelf, as is known. Any suitable number of such shelves may be provided, as will be understood. The shelf 15 is disposed a suitable distance above bottom wall 16 of the inner 14. The liner 14 may be formed of any suitable material. It may, for example, be in the form of a drawn steel panel but preferably is formed of a suitable plastic, such as polystyrene, which may be colored for decorative purposes. A space between shelf 15 and bottom wall 16 receives two trays 17 and 18 of substantially rectangular shape in plan, as shown more clearly in Figure 2, pivotally mounted at their forward outer corners on the side walls 19 and 20, respectively, of the liner 14. The trays 17 and 18 also may be formed of steel or other suitable material, but preferably are molded and formed of a suitable plastic, such as a polystyrene, and may also be colored for decorative purposes.

A mounting bracket 23, shown more clearly in Figures 2, 4 and 6, is secured on the inner face of each of the side walls 19 and 20 at the front thereof and between the bottom wall 16 and shelf 15. The brackets 23 are secured in position by two screws, one of which is shown at 24, passing through the rearwardly extending arm 25 of bracket 23 and the adjacent side wall and receiving a nut 26 of known type secured thereon and bearing against the side wall. Each bracket 23 is provided with a front arm 27 extending from arm 25 inwardly of the recess defined by the linear 14. The respective brackets 23 are thus of approximately L-shape in cross section and the arms thereof are integrally connected by upper and lower c'orner bosses 28 and 29, respectively, and a reinforcing web element 30. The upper boss 28 of'each of the brackets 23 is provided with an integral upwardly extending hinge pintle or stud 31, the upper end portion of which is tapered upwardly as shown in Figure 6. The brackets 23 preferably are molded andv formed of a suitable plastic the same as that from which the liner 14 and the trays 17 and 18 are formed and which may be colored for decorative purposes. Each of the mounting brackets 23 is provided with thickened portions for reinforcement, as shown.

Each of the trays 17 and 18 is provided at its front outer corner with a bracket structure 34 of approximately L-shape in plan comprising a front arm 35 extending rearward from front wall 36 of the tray and a rear arm 37 extending from the rear end of arm 35 to the outer end wall 38 of the tray. The lower portion of end wall 38 of tray 18 is inclined downward and inward at 38a and the bracket structure 34 includes a thickened reinforcing portion 39 of end wall 38 having an upper edge 40 inclined downward and rearward to wall 38, as shown more clearly in Figure 5. The thickened portion 39 is formed integrally with arm 37 of bracket structure 34 and provides effective reinforcement therefor. Upper and lower bosses 40 and 41, respectively, extend forwardly from arm 37 of bracket structure 34. The boss 40 is of step formation, as shown, and is provided with a central bore for reception of the stud 31 of mounting bracket 23, and the boss 41 is provided with. a centrally disposed downwardly extending hinged pintle or stud 42 the lower end portion of which is tapered downward as shown in Figure 5. The vertical distance betweenthe lower face of boss 41 and the lower face of boss 40 is the same as the vertical distance between the upper face of boss 29 and the upper face of boss 28 of the mounting bracket 23. By positioning the bosses 40 and 41 of the tray 18 above the bosses 28 and 29, respectively, of the mounting bracket 23, and then moving the tray downward so as to cause the stud 42 to enter the opening in boss 29 and the stud 31 to enter the opening in boss 40, the tray 18 is readily mounted upon the bracket 23 for swinging movement about a vertical axis, as will be understood,

bosses 40 and 41 then seating upon bosses 28 and 29, re-

spectively, for supporting the load of the tray and its contents. By raising the tray 18 so as to disengage the studs 31 and 42 from the corresponding bosses, the tray may as readily be removed from the mounting bracket, as will be understood. Preferably the bracket structure 34 is provided, in the plane of the lower portion of boss 40, with a reinforcing web element 43, shownmore clearly in Figure 2, formed integrally with arms 35 and 37 and with the front wall 36 of tray 18, the outer edge of web element 43 being curved on an arc concentric with the stud receiving opening of boss 40, that is, concentric with the hinge axis of the tray 18.

The bracket structure at the outer forward corner of the tray 17 is substantially the same as that of tray 18, it being noted that outer end wall 38b of tray 17 is inclined for the major portion of its width upward and forward to the outer end of the inner arm 37 of the bracket structure and portion 46 of bottom wall 47 of tray 17 is inclined downward and forward to the lower 'edge of arm 37 of the bracket structure; for reinforcing purposes. The outer end wall 38b of tray 17 is otherwise substantially vertical, as is the inner or back wall 48 thereof and the inner end wall 49, the inner or back wall 50 and the inner end wall 51 of tray 16 also being substantially vertical. The inner end walls 4h and 51 of trays 17 and 18, respectively, preferably are curved on an arc concentric with the hinge axis of the respective trays so that when they are in their inner or closed positions, between the shelf and bottom wall 16, the inner ends thereof are disposed in abutting relation, the two trays "then extending substantially the full width of the recess 13 defined by the liner 14. The tray 17 is intended for storing eggs and, to that end, bottom wall 47 thereof is provided with a suitable number-12 are shownof cups or depressions 52 of suitable shape and size for receiving the larger or base ends of eggs supported therein in vertical position, as is known.

A latch member 55, substantially rectangular in plan and shown more clearly in Figures 2 and 3, is mounted on the upper face of bottom wall 16 transversely of the central area of the forward portion thereof. Latch mem- 'ber 55 may be formed of any suitable material but preferably is formed of a plastic, such as a nylon having high resistance to impact and possessing considerable mechanical strength and resiliency while also being of substantial rigidity, such as the plastic from which the trays and associated parts above described are formed. Latch member 55 is provided with a lengthwise reinforcing rib 56 disposed centrally of its upper face and, at eachside of the forward end of rib 56, with an upwardly extending hook or bill 57. A downwardly extending stud 58, formed integrally with latch member 55, fits snugly through a corresponding opening in bottom wall 16 and a securing screw 59 is inserted through latch member 55 adjacent the inner or rearward end thereof and extends downwardly through bottom wall 16, screw 59 being secured in position by a nut 66 of known type secured thereon and bearing against the under face of bottom wall 16. As is shown more clearly in Figure 3, the forward portion of bottom wall 16 underlying the forward portion of latch member 55 is deflected downward at 16a providing a space 61 therebetween to accommodate downward deflection of the forward portion of latch member 55. As will be understood from what has been said, the latch member 55' is fixedly secured in position on the bottom wall 16 of recess 13 with its inner or forward end disposed adjacent the front of the recess, as shown in Figures 2 and 3.

The tray 18 is provided at. its inner end with a downwardly and forwardly inclined cam element 64 formed integrally with the bottom wall 65 thereof and providing, at its front end, a latch shoulder 66. Tray 17 is also provided at its inner end with a cam element providing a I latch shoulder similar to the element 64 and shoulder 66 thereof. When the trays 17 and 18 are in their inner or closed positions, the shoulders 66 of cam element 64 thereof engage in back of the bills 57 of the latch member 55 thereby latching the trays in closed position, as will be clear from Figure 3.

Front wall 36 of tray 18 extends above the corner bracket structure 34 thereof a distance such that when the tray 18 is in its inner or closed position the top of wall 36 is spaced at short distance below the underface of shelf 15, as shown at 67 in Figure 1, and the front wall 68 of tray 17 is of the same height as the front 36 of tray 18 and extends above the bracket structure 34 the same distance as the latter wall. The height of the space 67 is slightly greater than the height of the bills 57 of latch member 55 and the vertical distance between the underface of shelf 15 and the upper face of the upper boss 40 of the respective bracket structures 34 is slightly greater than the length of stud 42 below boss 41 and the length of stud 31 above boss 28 of the mounting bracket 23. Preferably, though not necessarily, front wall 36 of tray 18 and front wall 68 of tray 17 are each recessed for reception of an ornamental panel 69 seating therein and secured in position by suitable means, including a handle 70 seating on panel 69 at the top thereof and removably secured to the front wall of the tray in a suitable manner. When it is desired to move a tray to open position the tray is raised slightly by means of the handle 70 and as permitted by the space 67, so that shoulder 66 of the cam element 64 is clear of bill 57 of the latch member 55, after which the tray may be swung outward to an open position, such as the position of tray 17 shown in Figure 2. A slight push on the open tray in closing direction is sufficient to effect closing thereof. The tray swings in closing direction and as it approaches closed position the cam element 64 contacts the corresponding bill 57 of latch member 55 and deflects the forward portion thereof downward until the cam element 64 passes over bill 57, at which time the forward portion of latch member 55 snaps upward positioning bill 57 in front of the shoulder 66 thereby latching the tray in closed position. That camming action is desirable in that it slows down the movement of the tray in closing direction assuring, under normal condition, gentle closing of the tray thereby guarding against violent .closing and possible breakage of the tray contents if of a character, such as eggs, to be easily broken. It will also be noted that the latch means is disposed beneath the trays so as to be concealed thereby when the trays are in closed position. It is to be noted that the inner or front arms 27 of the mounting brackets 23 extends to within a short distance of the outer ends of the front walls of the trays, in front of the associated bosses and studs providing the hinge mounting for the tray, the mounting thus being concealed at all times so that the tray assembly presents a neat and finished appearance. Either of the trays may readily be removed by swinging outward to an open position such that the front wall of the tray is clear of the shelf 15, after which the tray may be lifted bodily off of the mounting bracket 23 and removed from the refrigerator door to be placed upon a suitable working surface, such as a countertop, or for washing or other purposes. After removal, the tray may readily be replaced in an obvious manner. We have thus provided a refrigerator door having trays which in their normal closed position present neat and finished appearance, which may be opened and closed with a minimum of effort and in a manner to guard against violent closing of the trays, and which may readily be removed and replaced as required or desired. The back and end walls of the trays 17 and 18 are of materially less height than the front walls 68 and 36 thereof, as shown, to permit of ready removal and replacement of the trays in the manner above stated.

It will be understood that changes may be made in detail 'without departing from the field and scope of our invention, and we intend to include all such variations, as fall within the scope of the appended claims, in this application in which the preferred form only of our invention has been disclosed.

a We claim: 7

1. In a refrigerator, a door provided at its inner face with a storage recess having side and bottom walls and a shelf spaced above the bottom wall, a tray substantially rectangular in plan having a closed position in which it is disposed in the space between said shelf and bottom wall and an open position extending outwardly from said space, said tray having a front wall disposed with its outer end spaced inwardly from one of said side walls of said recess when said tray is in its closed position, a mounting bracket within said recess on said one side wall adjacent the front thereof and between said shelf and said bottom wall, said bracket having a front arm extending inwardly from said one side wall into proximity to said front wall when said tray is in its closed position, latch means effective for holding said tray in closed position and releasable by upward movement of said tray when in its said closed position to predetermined extent, and cooperating means on said bracket and on said tray pivotally mounting the latter adjacent its outer front corner for swinging movement about a vertical axis from closed to open position and vice versa while accommodating upward movement of said tray to said predetermined extent, said pivotal mounting means being disposed in back of and concealed by said front arm of said bracket in all positions of said tray, said front wall of said tray being of a height less than that of said space by an extent at least as great as said predetermined extent of upward movement of said tray and the maximum height of said tray being within the height of said front wall.

2. In a refrigerator, a door provided at its inner face with a storage recess having side and bottom walls and a shelf spaced above the bottom wall, a tray substantially rectangular in plan having a closed position in the space between said shelf and bottom wall and an open position extending outwardly from said space, said tray having a front wall terminating short of the outer end of said tray and being provided at its outer forward corner with a bracket structure extending rearwardly from said front wall and toward the outer end of said tray, a mounting bracket within said recess on the side wall thereof at the outer end of said tray and adjacent the front of said side wall between said shelf and said bottom wall, said mounting bracket having a front arm extending from said side wall inwardly into proximity to the outer end of said front wall of said tray, latch means underlying said tray in its closed position effective for retaining it in such position and releasable by upward movement of said tray when in its said closed position to predetermined extent, and cooperating means carried by said bracket structure and said mounting bracket pivotally supporting said tray for swinging movement about a vertical axis from closed to open position and vice versa while accommodating upward movement of said tray when closed to said predetermined extent, said pivotal supporting means being disposed in back of and concealed by said front arm of said bracket in all positions of said tray, said front wall of said t-ray being of a height less than that of said space by an extent at least as great as said predetermined extent of upward movement of said tray and the maxi mum height of said tray being within the height of said front wall.

3. In a refrigerator, a door provided at its inner face with a storage recess having side and bottom walls and a shelf spaced above the bottom wall, a tray substantially rectangular in plan having a closed position in the space between said shelf and bottom wall and an open position extending outwardly from said space, said tray having 'a front wall terminating short of the outer end of 6 said tray'and being provided at its outer forward corner with a bracket structure extending rearwardly from said front wall and toward the outer end of said tray, a mounting bracket within said recess on the side wall thereof at the outer end of said tray and adjacent the front of said side wall between said shelf andsaid bottom wall, said mounting bracket having a front arm extending from said side wall inwardly into proximity to the outer end of said front wall of said tray, latch means underlying said tray in its closed position effective for retaining it in such position and releasable by upward movement of said tray when closed to predetermined extent, and hinge means comprising interengaging bosses and studs carried by said bracket structure and said mounting bracket pivotally supporting said tray for swinging movement about a vertical axis from closed to open position and vice versa, said hinge means being disengageable by upward movement of said tray relative to said mounting bracket and being disposed in back of and concealed by said front arm of said mounting bracket, said front wall of said tray being of a height less than that of said space by an extent at least as great as said predetermined extent of upward movement of said tray when closed and extending above said bracket structure ,a distance at least as great as the length of said studs, ,the remainder of said tray being of a height within that of said bracket in all positions of said tray structure whereby when said tray is in open position it may be moved upward effective for disengaging said hinge means and removing said tray from said bracket.

4. In a refrigerator, a door provided at its inner face with a storage recess having side and bottom walls and a shelf spaced above the bottom wall, a tray substantially rectangular in plan having a closed position in which it is disposed in the space between said shelf and bottom wall and an open position extending outwardly from said space, said tray having a front wall disposed with its outer end spaced inwardly from one of said side walls of said recess when said tray is in its closed position, a mounting bracket within said recess on said one side wall adjacent the front thereof and between said shelf and said bottom wall, said bracket having a front arm extending inwardly from said one side wall into proximity to said tray front wall when said tray is in its closed position, and cooperating means on said bracket and on said tray pivotally mounting the latter adjacent its front outer corner for swinging movement about a vertical axis from closed to open position and vice versa, said pivotal mounting means being disposed in back of and concealed by said front arm of said bracket in all positions of said tray.

5. In a refrigerator, a door provided at its inner face with a storage recess having side and bottom walls and a shelf spaced above the bottom wall, a tray substantially rectangular in plan having a closed position in the space between said shelf and bottom wall and an open position extending outwardly from said space, said tray having a front wall terminating short of the outer end of said tray and being provided at its outer forward corner with a bracket structure extending rearwardly from said front wall and toward the outer end of said tray, and a mounting bracket within said recess on the side wall thereof at the outer end of said tray and adjacent the front of said side wall between said shelf and bottom wall, said mounting bracket having a front arm extending from said side wall inwardly into proximity to the outer end of said front wall of said tray, and cooperating means carried by said bracket structure and said mounting bracket pivotally supporting said tray for swinging move ment about a vertical axis from closed to open position and vice versa, said pivotal supporting means being disposed in back of and concealed by said front arm of said bracket in all positions of said tray.

(References on following page) eewgov'r References Cited-in the file of this patent 2,209,659

UNITED STATES PATENTS 418,540 Starr Dec. 31, 1889 1,076,435 Ledward Oct. 21, 1913 5 1,301,461 'Ledward Apr. 22, 1919 1,733,382 McCurdy Oct. 29, 1929 149,136 2,064,839 Kroll et a1. Dec. 22, 1936 577,425

8 Mercer July 30, 1940 Spencer Aug. 28', 1951 Money Nov, 27, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS Australia Nov. 21, 1952 Germany Nov. 6, 1930 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No 2,877,077 March 10 1959 James M, Robinson et al.

Column 6, line 20, after "bracket" all positions of said tray said tray'u and before the comma, insert m in line 27 strike out "in all positions of Signed and sealed this 30th day of Jun 1959.

(SEAL) Attest:

KARL H. XLINE Commissioner of Patgnts 

